Hive War
by Sgt. Tiger
Summary: Watch the brave defenders of Janis Prime, fight off a terrifying swarm of Tyranids.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 **

**Early Deployment **

It seemed to be a pleasant day on the small forge-world of Janis Prime, with clear skies and mild temperatures. The people of the hive cities were going about their daily business, the factory workers were making their daily products, and the Planetary Defense Forces were on stand by. At Decapolis, the capital city, things were not as pleasant. The planetary Governor had been speaking with Lord General William Cathers about a possible Tyranid Hive Fleet on its way to the planet. "That is not possible Lord General," the Governor said, "Our sensors would have picked up an incoming fleet."

"I assure you Mr. Governor," Lord General Cathers began, "A Hive fleet is on approach. It has been identified as a Leviathan splinter fleet. I must recommend the immediate mobilization of the PDF. If those Tyranids make planet fall, you will be hard pressed to stop them."

"Well I can assure you Lord General, that the PDF will be deployed when the Tyranids arrive, and then we will fight them off."

"I knew you would say that, Governor," Cathers said, "As a result my forces will make planet fall and reinforce your PDF. When we do come you will be out of a job and your planet will be under martial law. Do I make myself clear?"

"Very," the Governor responded, while giving a big sigh and watching the Lord General's face disappear from the hololith. He began to wonder, what would happen if the Tyranids did hit the planet.

Lord General Cathers, along with his eight Commissars, took their seats at the briefing room. Also in the room were the captains of the four Troop ships carrying the Imperial Guard forces. When all were present the lights dimmed and the briefing began. A holographic display of the Janis system appeared and the Lord General began to speak. "To begin, long range sensors have picked up a Tyranid Hive Fleet approaching Janis Prime. It is a small forge-world in this sector, but it can not fall." Green and red runes appeared on the projection. Then pointing to the green runes, the Lord General continued, "The troop ships and our support fleet is in this position. The hive fleet is here. We should arrive at Janis Prime in five days, and the hive fleet will arrive in two weeks. When we arrive we will reinforce the PDF units on the planet and prepare to defend the planet at all costs."

"Sir" Commissar Federov interrupted, "How will eight regiments defend an entire planet?"

"We will defend the most strategic locations, and have the PDF defend the majority of the planet. If we can't defend the planet we will call for reinforcements. Now, if that is all this meeting is over."

The Officers left the room, but Commissar Federov lingered behind. "Anything you want to say Commissar?"

"Yes sir," Federov began, "Something is not feeling right about this hive fleet. There is something strange about it."

"Why do you say that?"

"I've been studying the warp currents, and the navigators say that the fleet should have arrived by now, but they are choosing to take a slower route."

"The Tyranids are just another foul Xenos race, and are just animals. They do not think like we do."

"I hope you are right, thank you for your time Lord General," after Federov said this, he left the room and proceeded down a long corridor to his quarters. He sat down and contemplated how to prepare his regiment for a planetary defense.

The Imperial Fleet entered the system five hours ahead of schedule, and went into a high orbit over Janis Prime. The troop ships began dropping the regiments onto the planet in eight different positions. The Tarsonian 734th commanded by Commissar Nikolai Federov, ordered to defend the capital city of Decapolis. Federov and Lord General Cathers sat in seats next to each other, while on the drop ship heading toward the city. Cathers happened to be looking at a data slate with the tactical read outs of the planet, and the position of its defenders. "Prepare for landing," the pilot said. All the men onboard the drop ship buckled there harnesses, and prepared for landing.

The engines roared as the maneuvering thrusters fired, and a few seconds later the drop ship was sitting quietly on a landing pad. When the ramp dropped the guardsmen went to their assigned duties, while the Lord General and the Commissar headed for the capital building. They went inside a massive dome structure, and a large entry way covered in marble and sculptures of the Emperor and heroes from the past. As the two of them walked through the room, astonishment met the eyes of many on lookers as they past. The two officers walked onto an elevator, which took them to the top floor. When they exited, they found a young woman sitting at a desk doing paperwork. "Are you two from the Imperial Guard?" she asked.

"Yes we are," Commissar Federov announced.

"You are expected."

The young woman motioned towards the door to the governor's office, and the two officers went inside. "Nice to see you again Lord General," the governor began, "I assume your journey was uneventful, and I see you brought one of your lackeys."

"I am Commissar Nikolai Federov," he said outraged, "Remember, I am a Commissar. I could keep your planet safe, or burn it to ashes at the snap of my fingers. I demand a little respect."

"That is enough," Cathers said, "Lets just get to the reason we are here. Governor, have you mobilized your PDF forces yet?"

"No," the Governor said, "But I…"

"There is no excuse Governor, there is a Tyranid Hive Fleet on its way here, and if you can't protect or lead your planet's people I will have you removed from office." The two Imperial Guard officers then stood up, and left the room. They proceeded to leave the building and head toward the regiment's position. "Commissar, I want you to prepare your men for combat," Cathers began, "I want you to run every drill you know with them. I want them to be far superior to this planet's PDF. I want you and your regiment to show everyone what the guard is really made of. If possible, I want to be able to defend this planet by ourselves."

"Yes sir," Federov replied before he rushed off to follow his orders.

A few days later, the forces of the Tarsonian 734th were ready for anything. Commissar Federov was proud that these men could fight for him, and they were the best. He had them play war games against the PDF, while watching them win easily over them. There was much talk amongst the men, gossip of commendations, transfers, or sometimes talk of leaving the planet. None of these were true, and it became apparent to the men when the Commissar called all the senior officers to meet with him.

The captains of all five companies and the artillery captain met the Commissar. He began to speak, "Now, I know what some of you might be thinking, 'this is gonna be a cake walk, all we got to do is sit here.'" Well you would be wrong on that one. As you know, we along with the other regiments have been sent here to defend against a Tyranid Hive Fleet, but there is a problem. They will be early." A few gasps filled the small room, but soon everyone was silent again. "We have to be ready," the Commissar, continued, "They will be here within a few days. We are to mobilize alongside the PDF." He then turned on a vox channel that could be heard throughout the base camp. "Attention all troops, we are going to full invasion alert. I repeat we are going to full invasion alert." The Commissar then turned off the vox unit and looked at his senior officers and said, "Well what are you waiting for, get to your posts."

The next morning, it seemed like everything was returning to normal, but that soon changed. The once blue sky was filled with black and crimson colors as the Hive Fleet entered orbit and began spewing smaller living ships as they descended towards the planet. "Sir," a guardsman monitoring the sensors said frantically, "I don't think we can hold them all off."

"What do you mean?" Commissar Federov said inquisitively.

"There are thousands, no millions of small troop transferring organisms heading towards the planet."

"There is no way all of our regiments are going to be able to stop all of these monstrosities. We need help." The Commissar picked up a vox until and began making a frantic call for help. "To anyone receiving, this is Commissar Nikolai Federov of the Tarsonian 734th, and the planet Janis Prime is under heavy attack by Tyranid forces." A large glob of acid slammed into a munitions barrel and caused it to explode rocking the surrounding area. The Commissar then continued, "Pleas any reinforcements would, be appreciated, we are going to be overrun…" The vox unit ceased transmitting, and fell silent.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Help from the Unexpected **

The battle raged on as the forces of the Tarsonian 734th defended against the total onslaught of the Tyranid forces. It seemed like there was a never-ending see of Hormagaunts and Genestealers. Everyone that was killed was replaced by two more.

Commissar Federov stood on the front lines with his men firing his bolt pistol at the foul Xenos creatures. He was about to unleash a hellish furry on one of the foul beasts, when he ran out of the precious ammunition. Then he activated his Chainsword, and it began to hum with power as the teeth began to move and rotate. This weapon proved to be very effective as an unlucky hormogaunt was sliced in two. All hope seemed lost, but after a few hours of heavy fighting the guardsmen defeated the swarm they were fighting.

Despite the grim look on the faces of the troops, there weren't many casualties. That surprised the Commissar. _Usually they wouldn't have stopped attacking. Something isn't what it seems. _He thought to himself. "Sir, sir," a guardsman said frantically, "Recon has found evidence of heavy fighting to the south east, but the strange thing is, the only dead are the Tyranids. Someone else is here on this planet and they aren't guardsmen. The Commissar nodded as he was told this, but wasn't able to contemplate it long when a lieutenant walked towards him. With a salute he said, "Sir, Lt. Bear, I am here with my report."

"I see you took little casualties, but I also noticed this Sgt. Banks. What about him."

"He fought valiantly, sir. He saved a few of my men and myself as well. When others would have turned and run, he stayed and made sure all of his comrades would be safe. He risked his life to save all of us."

"This man should be rewarded for his actions. Many people would not of done such things in a battle of this scale. Can you take me to him?"

The lieutenant led Federov over to where Banks was standing. Federov walked up to the man that he was told was Banks. He was a short young man with brown eyes and dark brown hair. He wore the armor of a shock trooper, one of the elite in the regiment. He stood against the defensive wall playing cards with his squad mates, and winning too. The Commissar made a motion with his hand, gesturing Banks to come to where he was standing.

"Sir Sgt. Banks reporting," Banks said with a crisp salute.

"Your CO tells me great things about sergeant," Federov said calmly. "Your bravery is great, and I heard you were good at killing Tyranids."

"Racked up thirty five kills if I do say so myself. What is this about sir?"

"Because of these actions, I would like to give you the Emperor's Star. For your acts of selfless bravery."

"Thank you sir, but now I must continue my duties."

"Of course sergeant, carry on."

Late that day Banks led his squad of shock troops on a recon mission, when he found a large creator in the ground. Upon further investigation by a couple chaplains and tech priests, they discovered the remnants of an orbital bombardment shell. That only meant one thing. The Emperor's finest were on Janis Prime. Banks and his squad later returned to the regimental HQ, and told the Commissar, but was waived off as not probable.

A few hours later Federov received orders to return to the capital. When they reached the city walls they found signs of heavy fighting, but no human loses. The regiment took up position on the wall, and Federov went off to a meeting that had been called by the Lord General.

About an hour passed since the meeting began, and the Commissars inside began to here a thumping noise. Most thought of it as nothing, but it bothered Federov. It became louder and louder, and eventually the thumping resembled the sound of heavy armored boots. Then, the large doors at the entrance of the meeting room burst open and three giant men in black Power Armor with silver shoulder plates with a brass Hawk painted on it, entered the room. All the Commissars and even the Lord General were shocked by the appearance of these super humans. _What Space Marines, here on Janis Prime. When I called for help, I didn't expect them to send Space Marines,_ Federovthought to himself. The Space Marines on the sides stood at the door holding Bolters, and the one in the middle, obviously the leader, approached the table at which everyone sat. He had a massive Storm Bolter and a Power Sword. He stood at the head of the table across from the Lord General, and took off his helmet. He was a man with bright green eyes and brown hair. He looked at the men in the room and he said in a low voice, "I am Captain James McClau, of the Brass Hawks Space Marine Chapter. We have come to aide you in your defense against the Tyranids."

McClau continued to speak, "It seems your so called defensive strategies have worked out. But there is one big flaw to it. In the long run, the Tyranids will consume most of the planet. That is unacceptable. I have orders from Inquisitor Cyrus that the planet must be as intact as possible. The hives and forges here are a valuable asset to the Emperor's Holy War against the foul forces of Chaos."

"We don't have enough troops here to defend the planet. The PDF is just too small," the Commissar of the Sigma 246th said.

"Why don't you let the man speak," Federov said quietly, "He is a Space Marine Captain after all. He will be able to find a way."

"Thank you Commissar," McClau said, "I will have my company search out and kill the Tyranid Hive Tyrant. Then your guardsman will be able to take care of the rest. However, I will need one regiment to support my company."

"That settles it then," Lord General Cathers said, "The Tarsonian 734th will assist the Brass Hawks in anyway possible."

The meeting was dismissed and Federov walked out besides the massive eight-foot tall space marine captain. "Captain," Federov said trembling, "I am Commissar Nikolai Federov, CO of the Tarsonian 734th. And I can assure you that my men will be quite able to follow your commands."

"We shall see Commissar," McClau said, "We shall see."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**Look more Tryanids **

The regiment and the space marines didn't get off to a great start, on their quest for the Tyranid Hive Mind. Only an hour passed before they met resistance. The Tyranids amassed a huge battle force and attacked the imperials with out notice.

Sgt. Banks was lying in his makeshift bed, when he heard the staccato sounds of bolters being fired and the soft whining of las guns discharged. He woke suddenly and jumped out of bed. He quickly put on his armor, grabbed his gun, and ran outside to join the fight. Outside there seemed to be an unending sea of Tyranids. He joined his squad along the defensive perimeter, and opened up with his hell-gun.

"Trying to get another medal Banks," Sgt. Jared Wolfe yelled as he picked off a hormogaunt with his own hell-gun.

"No, just trying kill something," Banks yelled back as he sprayed the enemy with his weapon.

Elsewhere Capt. McClau was slicing and dicing anything with more than two legs. A Genestealer jumped towards him, but was blown to pieces by a las-cannon.

"We don't have time for this," McClau said to himself. Then activating his helmet's built in vox unit he said, "Federov pull your men back, I'm ordering some air support."

"What," Federov began, "How are you gonna get air support all the way out here?"

"Just do it," McClau barked as he switched the vox frequency to that of the Brass Hawks Battle barge, Black Hawk. "McClau to Black Hawk, I need one orbital bombardment shell 500 meters due north, from my position."

"Right away captain," was the monotone response of a combat servitor. McClau then looked to the east and west and saw that the guard regiment had fallen back. Then he and his company followed suit.

Banks was disappointed that he no longer had the opportunity to kill the Tyranids, so he turned on his hell-gun's safety, and leaned on it as he watched the wave of Tyranids shift and swirl. Then he heard a loud whistling noise coming from overhead. He looked to see what it was, but by the time he knew where the sound was coming from, there was an eruption of fire after a massive explosion. The shear force of it shook the ground he stood on, and incinerated most of the Tyranid attack force. After the smoke cleared, there was a crater the size of a city block, and no trace of the Tyranids that were nearby. Then the heavy weapons batteries and devastator squads mopped up the survivors.

After the heavy weapons finished cleaning up the remenants of the swarm that had attacked the Imperials, Federov and McClau met at the command chimera. They were both looking at the flickering image of Lord General Cathers.

"I want you guys back here," he said very agitated. "The capital is under attack and we don't have enough troops to defend it."

"Why don't you just pull back, or evacuate the area," McClau said calmly.

"That is precisely what we wanted to do, but we have a problem. The city is surrounded, and there is no getting in or out."

"What about air support," Federov butted in, "We still do have a fleet up stairs, and we've got McClau's battle barge. He could just air strike them."

"The fleet has been engaged," the Lord General said. "So get back here and help us."

Then the hololith shut off and Cathers's face disappeared. McClau went out to send a message to the battle barge to send Thunder Hawk Gunships to aid in the transportation of the regiment and the space marine company. _Maybe we can save the city, and find the Hive Tyrant with minimal casualties, _Federov thought. _Probably not. This is going to be the largest battle in this war._


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

**Hive Defense **

By the time the Tarsonian 734th and the Brass Hawks 2nd company arrived at the hive city know as Decapolis, the capital of the planet. A fierce battle was raging in which 24 PDF and 6 Imperial Guard regiments were fighting an innumerable amount of the foul Tyranids. There was a constant sound of gunfire as the Thunder Hawks drew closer to the city's landing pads. As they came closer the more frightened some of the less experienced men felt. None of them had ever fought a battle of this magnitude. As the gunships landed behind Imperial lines the troopers saw for themselves the sheer number of men the city brought to the fight. In this particular area, over 20 thousand men stood shoulder-to-shoulder, firing las rifles, auto cannons, and hell-guns into the see of crimson that was the Tryanids. Behind the infantry was the armor. There were rows and rows of Leman Russ Main Battle Tanks and several groups of mobile artillery called Basilisks.

Together, the troopers of the Tarsonian 734th and the Space Marines of the Brass Hawks Chapter disembarked from their Thunder Hawks and joined the battle. Banks and Wolfe were standing next to a squad of massive Terminators. These Space Marines in their massive armor could take on armies at once, and they were there next to a squad of Storm Troopers. Commissar Federov was with McClau and his Command squad, firing wildly into the see of Tryanids. The sounds were deafening, with the inhuman screams of the foul xenos and the firing of the M.B.T.'s (Main Battle Tanks) massive turret mounted cannons. The Thunder Hawks also contributed to the fight, they were dropping fuel air bombs and other high explosive charges that were meant to support infantry. But even though the Imperials had all this firepower, it looked as if they were going to be over run. No amount of tactics could save them, it was down to who would run out of troops and ammo first. There was also no retreat, and the price of failure was death. There was no-where to run to and nowhere to hide, the Tryanids had the hive city surrounded, and there appeared to be no hope of reinforcements.

The Tyranids on the other hand, had an almost never-ending supply of Warriors, Termagaunts, Hormagaunts, and Genestealers. Also, swarms of Gargoyles were keeping the Thunder Hawks on their toes, shooting strange ichors at them at every possible opportunity.

Even the mighty Space Marines with their power armor, were having a hard time against this vast amount of Tyranids. They all lined up in their Tactical, Devastator, and Terminator squads, and gave hell to the Tyranids. Also the lances of blue energy that shot out of the Librarian's staff killed many Tyranids at a time, but they were replaced by even more. The Predator Annihilators fired long beams of white-hot lasers from their las Cannons, as the Vindicators fired shells from its massive Demolisher Cannon. The Whirlwind tank was assisting the Basilisks with their long-range missile launchers, and the 2nd company Dreadnought Fired away with its Assault Cannons, and annihilated any Tyranids that came near with its Las Cannon.

All though the Imperials had a massive amount of firepower, the battle wasn't going well. All the regiments were already taking heavy casualties and many forward positions were being over run. Banks, Wolfe, and their Storm Trooper squads remained at their position along side the Terminators, firing their weapons almost constantly firing. A Gargoyle was about to chop the head off one of the Terminators, when Banks blew the retched beast out of the sky, and that Terminator returned the favor by crushing the head of a Genestealer that was about to turn Banks's face into a bloody mass on the ground. Banks wondered how long till reinforcements came if any.

McClau sliced a Tyranid Warrior in half, and its carcass fell to the ground crushing a group of Termagaunts. He then jumped into the air and killed a Gargoyle, and threw its carcass back into the swarm that it spawned from. Federov was nearby firing his bolt pistol rapidly. Soon he ran out of ammo and drew his Chainsword, and like the Space Marine Captain, he too sliced and diced any Tyranids that came near him.

"How many are there," a nearby guardsman yelled, as he fired his las rifle, on full auto.

"When they are all dead, you can find out," Federov replied as the teeth of the Chainsword chewed their way through the body of a Hormagaunt.

Lord General Cathers sat in his office, issuing orders and trying to figure out how a force of this size could not defeat the Tyranids. He watched his hololith, but the image was always the same, a see of Tyranids being shot at by the defenders. He noticed the forces were about to be over run, so he voxed all the Commanding Officers and said, "Fall back. Get to the defensive wall. Artillery cover them as long as possible, use the Earth Shakers!"

Banks heard the Lord General's orders, and began walking backwards firing steadily. The Terminators did the same, and other guardsmen fell back as well, but also fixed bayonets.

"Bayonets, are you guys nuts," Banks yelled at a sergeant.

"Commissar's orders," he responded.

"If you go in with bayonets, you're going to get yourself killed. Now get those las-guns on full auto and start spraying."

The guardsmen did as they were told, and started spraying. Then Banks heard the high-pitched screams of Earth Shaker Artillery Shells hurdling to the ground. There was a deafening explosion and another and another.

"Sergeant," Banks said to the Terminator next to him, "They are putting up a barrage, this is out chance to get behind the wall."

"We will be fine," the massive Terminator said calmly. "We can take care of ourselves out here."

"Then my squad is staying to. You guys will be over whelmed if you are out here alone."

"You are very brave my friend."

"Thanks, now we will have excellent cover if we get to that trench over there," Banks said pointing to the trench.

The Storm Troopers and Terminators ran towards the trench, and jumped in only to find other guardsmen that refused to leave their post, most of them were PDF defending their homes.

McClau saw the trench the Terminators were in, so he grabbed Federov by the collar and carried him over to the trench.

"What are you doing, we could stay and fight," Federov yelled.

"You must live to fight on, and if we stayed we'd both be dead," McClau said. "Now take command of the guardsmen here and I'll assist you with my marines."

Federov ordered for the guardsmen to fix bayonets and prepare to fire. The Tyranids were busy destroying the outer defenses, and were about 400 meters away.

"Fire on my mark," Federov yelled to the guardsmen in the trench, as the Tyranids began charging towards them.

"Steady, steady!" he yelled as the Tyranids came closer.

"Fire!" yelled Commissar Federov, as a wave of lasers and bolts flew towards the Tyranids from the trenches and the defensive walls. The affect was devastating. Tryanid after Tryanid fell, and a huge pile of bodies began to accumulate as the defenders continued to fire. McClau noticed if all the other forces followed suite that they would be able to push back the foul Xenos. He voxed all the other commanders and told them what was needed to be done.

Lord General Cathers saw what was happening on the battlefield, the defenders were pushing back the Tyranids. He couldn't believe it; he thought the battle was lost. Right then and there he decided that Commissar Federov deserved a promotion. Now, all he needed to do was to see if Federov would survive the battle.

"Ready," Federov yelled, "Push, take back the ground you lost. Storm Troopers up front."

The forces charged into the fray firing wildly, shooting away at everything in sight and stabbing everything else with their bayonets. From the skies it seemed as if waves of guardsmen were charging into the Tyranid ranks, and winning too. They were retaking much of the ground they lost, and soon were in their original trenches killing all who opposed them.

"By the Emperor," Sgt. Fernandez yelled from his tactical squad's trench, "To the west. Reinforcements, it's a whole armored regiment."

A Regiment from the Steel Legion of Armageddon had arrived, with seven armored companies each with twenty Leman Russ M.B.T.'s and five Baneblade Super Heavy Tanks. The tanks fired away at the Tyranids making huge holes in their ranks. They were caught by complete surprise. Cornered between two enemies the Tyranids on the western front were annihilated with frightening swiftness. The Steel Legion then proceeded around the edge of the city destroying anything that opposed the Emperor.

With the combined effort of all eight Imperial Guard Regiments, the PDF, and the Space Marines, the battle for Decapolis seemed with in grasp. Lord General Cathers received a vox from the Brass Hawks Battle Barge, the Black Hawk. It said that they were going to proceed with orbital bombardment of the Tyranid forces further than 70 Kilometers from the city. When the bombardment began, the defenders finished off the remaining Tyranids, and the battle was over. The Imperials were victorious, but at a terrible price. About one third of the PDF regiments were killed, and each of the guard regiments took about a company's worth of casualties. The Space Marines lost two entire squads, a Predator, and a Vindicator.

Lord General Cathers walked out of the main gate of the city towards Federov's position. The Commissar was talking to one of his subordinates when the Cathers walked up to him. Federov saw him and gave a crisp salute.

"At ease," Cathers said returning the salute. "I need to talk to you, will you walk with me."

"Yes sir," Federov said as he began walking besides the Lord General.

"That was quite a show you put on back there, Nikolai."

"Thank you sir."

"Please call me Will."

"Thank you Will," Federov said awkwardly.

"The use of all the forces around you, has won you favor with the troops. Both PDF and Imperial Guard. Even the Space Marines call you a man of honor and courage."

"Really."

"Yes, all of the men respect you more than me, and I'm the Lord General."

"I guess so," Federov said with a chuckle.

"I have seen you ability to command and follow orders. I've seen your skill. For that I commend you. That is all Colonel-Commissar."

"But I'm just a Commissar," Federov said confused.

"I Lord General William Cathers promote you to Colonel-Commissar, with all the rights and responsibilities of that rank. You will be in command of all the Guard Regiments on the planet. You will answer to me and me only, unless there is someone of higher rank, but you still must come through me first. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir."

"Good now, why are you still standing here, get back to work."

Federov went back to his subordinates, and continued issuing orders for the new defensive plans of the city. After a few hours Federov noticed something flying towards the city in the distance. It was a heavily armed Thunder Hawk, but it wasn't from the Brass Hawks chapter, or any other space marine chapter Federov had seen before. Then, he saw the large shape of the letter I. A member of the Inquisition was there. Federov headed back to the inner part of the city to meet with the Lord General and the Inquisitor.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

**Preparing**

"Your use of the orbital bombardment cannons on this planet is totally unacceptable!" barked Inquisitor Cyrus. "You were supposed to save the forges not destroy them remember. Fall out from a few of the shells permanently damaged one forge and another shell, used in this battle in fact, completely obliterated another one."

"Sir we needed to save the city," Colonel-Commissar Federov said somewhat calmly. "If it fell we would have lost the planet completely."

"Sir you also said that saving the forges was a secondary priority," Captain McClau added. "It couldn't be helped that those forges were destroyed, but we are in process of locating the Hive Tyrant, and soon it will fall and the planet will be saved."

"Don't get me started about that captain," the Inquisitor barked. "You and Federov gallivanting around the planet killing and destroying everything in sight isn't what I call a search. Now get out of my sight."

Federov and McClau left the room and walked down the hall.

"That went well," McClau said.

"Why is that," Federov replied.

"Because you are alive and I still have my job."

Banks and Wolfe sat on a bunk with the rest of their squad playing a hand of poker, and like usual Banks is winning.

"What is the point of this game again?" asked Wolfe.

"To win the money in the pot Jared, it ain't that difficult," Banks said.

"So what are we waiting for, the Tyranids to attack again or something," Wolfe said, "We should be out there killing things. Not cramped up in this barracks."

"I know what you mean. Something is going down in command, with that Inquisitor here and all. Life is gonna be hell."

Near a forest 400 kilometers south of Decapolis, scout sergeant Hartman was leading his squad when he saw a large mass of swirling crimson. In that mass the sergeant saw the largest Tyranid he had ever seen.

"Hartman to McClau," the sergeant said into the vox unit built into his helmet.

"McClau here go ahead," McClau responded.

"Sir, my team and I have found the Hive Tyrant."

"Roger that, return to base."

"Yes sir."

"Now we can get something done around here," Inquisitor Cyrus said to the Lord General. "Now that the Hive Tyrant has been found, we can get around to killing it."

"Then we can mop up and get off this planet," Lord General Cathers replied.

"Lord General, get your best commander and charge him with the task of killing the Tyrant. The Space Marines will assist you."

"Thank you sir."

Federov and McClau were standing side by side in a conference room, where all the colonels, captains, space marine sergeants, and commissars were seated.

"We have been charged a task of great importance," Federov began. "We are about to fight the battle of all battles. A full scale assault on the Tyranid Hive Tyrant."

Gasps filled the quiet room as Federov continued.

"The cursed beast is currently near a forest 400 km south of Decapolis. There is a mountain range north and west of their position. The armored regiments will lead the attack after a fierce bombardment from the Hydras and Basilisks. Then the infantry will move in. At this time we will have trapped the Tyranids along the mountains. As this happens, the Space Marines will make their attack against the Hive Tyrant itself. Captain McClau will explain."

McClau stepped foreword and said, "The attack by your forces, several gunships will be softening up the Tyranids by doing multiple bombing and strafing runs. Then my marines and I will attack via drop pods and kill the Tyrant."

"Prepare your men and equipment, we attack at dawn."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 

**The Attack**

Dawn came early that morning, and the sun had just begun to rise behind a layer of pink clouds. The regiments were preparing to leave. There were men everywhere. Some were boarding dropships, others preparing weapons, mechanics were fixing tanks, but most of them were writing their wills. This would be a battle where many would end up dead, and many more wounded.

Sgt. Banks stood in front of his squad of Storm Troopers, watching them. He felt proud to lead them into battle once more, maybe for the last time. Then Jared walked up to him.

"They are scared Ed," he said.

"I know."

"What about you?"

"Jared, you've known me for 15 years now."

"You didn't answer my question Ed."

"Terrified, just like always."

"Me too."

"I'm going to talk to them," Banks said as he walked towards his squad.

Banks motioned for everyone to be quiet and listen. When he felt that everyone had his attention, he began to speak.

"Some of you I've known for a long time. Others have joined the squad over the years. I want you all to know that it has been an honor to serve with you. Look around you; these 10 men are the best in the regiment. We are the best, and we will lead the regiment into battle. Now I know what the odds are, and they are against us. Out of the 10 of us only two or three of us will survive to fight on. When we fight out there, we will choose to give ourselves better odds of survival. We will fight for the glory of the Emperor and our home world of Tarsonis. We will pull through, even if we think all is lost. We will pull through no matter the cost!"

"UH-RA," the storm troopers cheered as they picked up their gear in unison and marched to their dropship. As they did this Colonel Commissar Federov watched them, full of the pride that he was able to command them.

"The ground forces are beginning the assault captain," Lt. Hanson said on board the massive Gothic Class Cruiser, Emperor's Wrath.

"Good, send a message to the rest of the fleet and the Black Hawk. Tell them to attack the Hive Fleet," Fleet Captain Rocco Lampone replied.

The lieutenant sent the message and twelve green runes appeared on the screen as a sign of acknowledgement. The fleet moved out in a staggered formation. Then Lampone yelled, "All ships ready shields, arm main Lance Arrays and Torpedo Bays."

"The battle up stairs has started," Lord General Cathers said.

"Good, our forces will be in place in four minutes," Federov reported from the cockpit of his dropship.

"Proceed with the attack."

The shock as shell after shell pounded the Tyranid infested plain was unbelievable. Shells were seen flying through the air, and massive craters were forming in the ground every second. Next would come the strafing runs by the Thunder Hawks. They would soften up the Tyranid lines before the armor and infantry advanced.

Federov held up his hand; then the armor moved in, firing highly explosive shells from their cannons and firing their sponson-mounted weapons. Along side the Leman Russ and Baneblade tanks were the Brass Hawks Land Raider Crusaders. Each caring a squad of five terminators, so when the time was right they would attack the heart of the swarm.

"Sir we are ready," said one of the Commissars, "What are your orders?"

"Cease the bombardment, and send in the infantry," Federov ordered.

"This is going to be bloody."

There was a brilliant flash as the torpedoes from the imperial cruisers impacted the Hive ship. The monstrosity rocked back and forth, but was other wise unfazed by the attack. Despite the massive amounts of firepower the Imperials had, they were still hard pressed to keep up their attack in the Tyranid infested space. All around blasts of energy erupted from Lance Arrays, which seared their way through space to hit their targets.

An explosion rocked the Emperor's Wrath as glob of alien ichor smashed into the Lance Arrays.

"Captain," Lt. Hanson yelled, "We've lost main weapons."

"What about torpedoes," asked Captain Lampone.

"We have depleted our supply of torpedoes. Sir we are defenseless."

Then Lampone opened a vox channel to the entire crew, "Brave warriors of humanity, it has been an honor to serve with you upon this vessel. As some of you may know, the foul Xenos we have been fighting has taken out our weapons. We will not let this defeat us; will fulfill our duty to the Emperor of Man Kind. For the Emperor!"

"Orders sir," Hanson said.

"All ahead flank," the captain ordered. "I want you to ram that thing, and when we lodged inside of it, we will self detonate."

"Aye sir. All ahead flank."

The Emperor's Wrath lunged forward straight towards the Hive Ship. With the roar of scraping metal, the massive Gothic Class Cruiser plunged right into the middle of the Tyranid ship. Then there was a flash of blinding light, as The Emperor's Wrath exploded into a white fireball taking all the Tyranids with it. When the captains of the other Imperial ships saw this, they took off their naval caps, showing respect for the brave men who sacrificed themselves to save the planet.

"Don't let up keep firing," Banks yelled as he and his storm troopers charged into the battle, guns blazing.

Most of the Imperial guardsmen, that had charged, formed a single line across the battlefield firing constantly, and swapping places with guardsmen behind them when the needed to reload.

On the other side of the battlefield Federov watched as the battle unfolded. The infantry were doing their part, but he knew this was going to be bloody. He looked at his watch, and then at the battle, and said to himself, "This is taking too long."

Two hours into the battle, a great burst of light was seen from above the distant atmosphere. Federov knew what that was, a ship exploding. Then he heard rumbling, so he looked up to see seven droppods hurdling towards the ground. Phase 2 of the battle was about to commence.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 

**Warriors from the Sky**

There was the deafening rumbling sound of the drop pods, burning in the atmosphere as they plummeted towards the infested planet of Janis Prime. They plunged downward at an incredible rate, vaporizing anything getting too close to them. There were seven in total, seven squads of Space Marines. They were about to bring swift death to the enemies of the Emperor.

McClau sat in his seat, strapped in waiting for the battle to come. As he looked around at his battle brothers, he felt honored by their presence. Then McClau began to speak.

"When we became Space Marines," he began, "We took an oath."

"Protect the Emperor until our dying breath," all of the space marines responded in unison.

"These foul Tyranids have come to defile, this planet, and curse it with their stench. They have come to challenge the Holy Emperor of Man himself, by bringing forth this onslaught. We have answered their call for a challenger. We the Adeptus Astartes, we are the Space Marines of the Brass Hawks 2nd Company, and we will utterly and completely destroy these foul Xenos that have chosen to bring the Emperor's wrath upon themselves. There is no hope for them. There will be no peace. There will be no respite. There will be no mercy. We will suffer not the alien to live!"

With a sudden roar the Drop Pods slammed into the surface, and a wave of debris and shots from the mounted storm bolters erupted from the drop pods, killing anything within a hundred meters of the DZ (drop zone.) The space marines they held inside charged out and began firing wildly into the sea of Tyranids. Then the Land Raiders pulled up and spilled their deadly cargo of Terminators. All of them hacked and slashed their way through the Tyranid lines plunging deeper and deeper into the sea of the foul xenos, getting ever so closer to the Hive Tyrant. Closer to victory.

The marines themselves were glowing in a brilliant gold as they unleashed a hellish furry from their weapons, but the most spectacular of all was the Librarian. His staff pulsating with bright blue energy, sent lances of incredible power across the desert into his unsuspecting victims. He spun his staff over his head and leaped into the air with astounding skill, and slammed into the ground, plunging the bottom of his staff in the sand, and sending shock waves of energy in all directions, atomizing hundreds of the foul abominations.

The Space Marines charged forward as a whole, and went deeper and deeper into the heart of the swarm. Captain McClau cut a warrior in two with his power sword, when he saw his prize for the first time. It was massive, easily twice as big as a land raider. There it stood before the captain and the squads with him. The Hive Tyrant stood there, gnashing its razor sharp teeth, roaring loudly. It charged forward as the Marines began to fire. Now the battle is getting intrusting.


End file.
